The communication between (epi)genetic and (epi)transcriptomic gene regulatory pathways for precise control of gene expression in embryonic stem cells

Genetic information flows from DNA to RNA (transcription) and RNA to protein (translation) – referred to as the ‘central dogma’ of molecular biology. ‘Epigenetic’ modification takes place on DNA and histones without changing the DNA sequences to control transcriptional output (DNA to RNA). While ‘epitranscriptomic/ RNA epigenetic’ modification happens in RNAs (at the post-transcriptional level) without altering the RNA sequences to control RNA turnover and translation. Although epigenetic and epitranscriptomic modifications act at different layers of gene regulation programs, recently, a handful of studies revealed the ‘crosstalk’ between these two pathways in controlling gene expression. However, the underlying mechanisms are not yet fully understood. This study establishes a link between the METTL3 and YTHDF2-mediated m6A epitranscriptomic pathway and the epigenetic pathway in gene regulation.